LSA in the Media

Three Lifetime Support Scheme participants and Health Minister Jack Snelling held a press conference on May 26 to celebrate the achievements of the Scheme in its first year.

Minister Snelling joined Tabatha Cox, Richard Davis and Alexey Vasilev at Access Fitness, a specialised day rehabilitation hospital and gym, to provide an insight into the benefits of the Scheme.

In praising the Scheme, Minister Snelling said that its creation on July 1, 2014 was one of the proudest moments of his career.

“Today we see the human face of the changes the government made on first of July last year. LSA has made an enormous difference to their outcomes – they are far healthier than what they would have been under the old scheme,” he said.

“I would develop this Scheme again in a heartbeat. It’s the proudest thing I’ve been involved in during my political career.”

“When you see people like this who in some cases would have had no claim or compensation available to them whatsoever previously. In the case of single vehicle accidents like Richard’s, there would have been nothing available to him at all.”

“The new scheme allows people to get the early intervention they need. Everything we know about looking after people who have been involved in trauma, the sooner their rehabilitation starts the better the outcome.”

Occupational therapist and owner of Access Fitness, Marilyn Pattison, said that they see people far quicker under the Scheme.

“We 100% support the philosophy of early intervention with no waiting times at all. The sooner we can start people along this journey the sooner we can progress,” said Ms Pattison.

“This type of support is crucial to the recovery of those suffering severe injuries.”

Personal trainer, Tabatha Cox, woke up in hospital following her accident not knowing what happened, and says LSA stepped in and pretty much saved her life.

“I had never had a sick day in my life. Being injured – I didn’t want to accept it. I am so thankful to the Scheme, it saved my sanity,” said Tabatha.

“If the Scheme wasn’t in place, my recovery would have taken so much more time. The fact that LSA stepped in, they sped everything up and I am on the road to recover much sooner.”

“Being fit saved my life and LSA stepped in and saved the rest of it.”

Richard Davis came off his motorbike in 2014 and sustained a fractured spine. He says he wasn’t aware of the Scheme until he was in hospital.

“I didn’t know about the Scheme until someone showed up and explained it to me. It’s been absolutely amazing,” he said.

“The financial burden that comes with this type of injury, the medication, it’s all covered.”

Alexey Vasilev who sustained traumatic brain injury in a motor vehicle accident said that LSA helped him return to his life.

“All the medical things and everyday contact with them, the doctors they found – for me they were life-saving,” said Alexey.

“LSA supported me to get transferred to my home where my recovery was really really boosted. That was life-changing for me. In my case they found the best option for the patient to recover.”

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White Ribbon Commitment

​The LSA acknowledges and pays respect to the Kaurna people as the traditional custodians of the Adelaide region. We also acknowledge the deep feelings of attachment and the relationship of the Kaurna people to their country. We pay our respects to the Kaurna peoples’ ancestors and the living Kaurna people today.